Cabinet construction



Feb. 17,' 1959 J. B. KECK CABINET CONSTRUCTION Filed April 14, 1958 INVENTOR:

I ATTORNEYS.

,4 X l V United States CABTNET cons'rRUcrIoN Jack Belden Keck, Sioux Eity,..1pwa,,-assiguor to Curtis Companies Incorporated," Clinton; Iowa; a corporation "oflowa I Application'Ap'ril14',1958, sunrise. 728,222 7 4.Claims.. (tJl.312-'-263):

the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a cabinet construction in accordance with the invention;

Figure 2 is a perspective exploded view of the corner joint construction;

Figure 3 is a sectional view of the corner joint taken through the wall panel parallel to the bottom of the cabinet;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of Figure 3; and

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 5--5 of Figure 3.

The cabinet consists of a top plate or frame member having three kerfs extending parallel to and spaced inwardly from the side and rear edges thereof. The

atent the kerf. The kerf may be bevelled as indicated. at. 23'.

tofacilitate assembly of the panel 20 withinembers. 10'

where. the sides join the back, andv the necessity for.

bottom of the cabinet comprises a plate 18 having simi- I lar kerfs cut in the face thereof. The frame member 10 is usually replaced with a continuous top in wall cabinets. The base cabinet shown in the drawing is adapted to carry a plastic or linoleum covered top (not shown). The members 10 and 18 illustrated in the drawing are made of plywood but can be made from a single thickness. Since the top frame 10 is rectangular, the side kerfs 12 cross the rear kerf 16 at an angle of 90. In cutting the kerfs it is not necessary to stop the cut at the point where it joins the adjacent kerf. It will be noted that the kerfs extend completely across the frame 10 in both directions. This avoids the time and care required to cut accurately to the adjacent joint. Bottom plate 18 is identically grooved.

The kerfs form .a continuous groove which is adapted accurate location of said corners with respect tothe. kerf, the panel forming the. side wall. is not seated in the kerfl at the corners: This is. accomplishedv by providing cutout portions 26 coextensive with the corners (Figure. 2).. The depth of the cut=out 26 is approximately equal. to the depth of the kerf. Consequently, when the marginal edge of sheet 20 is seated in the kerfs or channel, the bottom of the cut-out portion 26 is flush with the surface of the member in which the kerf is cut, as best shown in Figures 4 and 5.

The advantage of this construction is at once apparent. The sheet 20 may be formed on .a first machine to provide a radius of curvature along the line where the back and sides of panel 20 merge. On a second machine the top and bottom members 10, 18 are then pressed from both sides onto the ends of the sheet 20, while the sides are held at 90 to the back. The kerfs are preferably daubed with glue to provide a very tight joint between the top and bottom and the sheet 20. The cut-out portion 26 is sufliciently wide so that it extends for a distance slightly beyond the point where the radius of the corner tangentially meets the kerfs 12 and 14. This construction avoids the necessity of accurately fitting the continuous wall panel forming the back and sides to the plates.

Additional reinforcement to hold the cabinet together is provided by supporting stiles 28 which are located at a plurality of points outside of the continuous side wall formed by the sheet 20. Two of the stiles are located at the open front of the cabinet to provide an anchoring piece for the doors. The other two are located near the rear of the cabinet on the sides. They are nailed and glued to the sheet 20 prior to shaping and assembling with the top and bottom, and are nailed to the top and bottom members after assembly. Doors 21 of any suitable design are hinged to the stiles 28 to close the front of the cabinet. Preferably, the doors arehinged by means of the type which swing from a point spaced outwardly from the face of the cabinet so that cabinets may beinstalled side by side without interference between adjacent doors when they are being opened.

to receive the side wall 20 of the cabinet. Although the kerfs extend only to three sides in the particular construction shown in the drawing, it will be understood that they may extend partially across the fourth or front side if desired. Usually, however, the front of the cabinet is covered by doors 21 which extend completely across the front.

The back and the two sides of the cabinet are formed from a single panel 20 preferably made from pressed cellulose board or the like. The material is of the type that can be moistened or steamed in order to shape it to a relatively sharp radius without fracture. The thickness of the sheet 20 is slightly less than the width of the kerfs cut in the top and bottom members 10 and 18. It should fit snugly in the groove or channel provided by Although pressed cellulose board has proved to be very satisfactory for the side wall of the cabinet, it will be understood that any material which has sufiicient strength and which is capable of being shaped to a relatively sharp radius can be used for purposes of the invention. The curved corners provide a very pleasing appearance and facilitate cleaning the interior of the cabinet. There is no possibility of dirt lodging in the corners, which is the case where the side wall is formed from individual back and side panels.

The interior of the cabinet can be arranged with shelves, racks or other pieces of equipment desired to meet the need for storing any particular kind of articles.

Other modifications of the invention will occur to those familiar with cabinet construction. There is no intention to limit the invention to the specific forms shown other than as necessitated by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A cabinet comprising opposed, generallyrectangular end members joined by a continuous wall panel forming the back and two sides of the cabinet, said panel having a curved corner between said back and said sides, each of said end members having three kerfs cut in the face thereof and being joined at right angles to provide a continuous channel for receiving the edge of said panel, said edge being cut out at said curved corners to a depth approximately equal to the depth of the kerf, so that said edge is seated in said kerf except at,

slaidl corners.

2: A cabinet comprising opposed, generally rectangular flat end members joined by a continuous wall panel forming the back and two sides of the cabinet, said panel having 'a curved corner between said back and said side, each of said end members having three kerfs cut in the face thereof and being joined at right angles to provide a continuous channel for receiving the edge of said panel, said edge being cut out at said curved corners to a depth approximately equal to the depth of the kerf so that said edge is seated in said kerf except at said corners, and a 15 1,2

plurality of supporting stiles extending between said end members outside said panel.

3. The cabinet of claim 2fwherein said panel is made from a single sheet of compressed cellulose board.

4. The cabinet of claim 2 wherein said supporting stiles are secured both to said end members and to said panel to provide a unitary structure.

References Cited in the file of this patent STATES PATENTS 19,069 Burton Jan. 12, 1858 835,508 Faust et a1 Nov. 13, 1906 933,287 Cable Sept; 7, 1909 Friedel Mar. 27, 1917 

